Apr 30, 2021 08:30AM
The Robert L.B. Tobin Land Bridge connects people with nature in San Antonio across a six-lane highway at Phil Hardberger Park, the largest wildlife crossing of its kind in the U.S.
A study reveals that the popular golden-mantled ground squirrel and 46 other species of rodents and shrews in Colorado are climbing uphill to escape warming temperatures in the state.
A study found that pollen seasons have been getting longer and more intense over the last 30 years with an increase in mean annual temperatures being the strongest driver.
Apr 30, 2021 08:30AM ● By Rachael Oppy
As cities phase out the installation of gas lines in new buildings to cut down on methane emissions, gas utilities have been staging adversarial campaigns nationwide.
MARLIT, an open-access web app based on a deep-learning artificial intelligence algorithm, will promote the detection and measurement of floating plastics in the sea.
Environmental activist Katrina Spade founded Recompose, the country’s first human composting funeral home, in Seattle, Washington, where composting as a form of human burial is legal.
Mar 31, 2021 08:30AM
More than 50 countries have united as the High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People (HAC 30x30), avowing to preserve 30 percent of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030.
Global Forest Watch, a free application, uses satellite imaging to detect and alert deforestation activities, a key factor of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide and climate change.
An open-access project, called Plan S, recently began requiring that scholarly papers published from the work they fund be made immediately available for public reading at no charge.
The National Wildlife Refuge System is facing crumbling infrastructure, maintenance needs, lack of resources, staffing cuts and chronic underfunding.
Researchers have formulated a new road-making material comprised of a mix of shredded single-use face masks and processed building rubble designed to meet civil engineering safety standards.
While demand and activity around organic products is rising, the challenge is to safeguard standards from large corporations that buy up organic brands and try to weaken USDA requirements.
Feb 26, 2021 08:30AM
The International Coral Reef Initiative has urged governments to take action to save the planet’s remaining coral reefs and their attendant fish populations.
The Bahamas Petroleum Company has begun exploratory oil drilling 150 miles from South Florida despite warnings of the potential for severe or catastrophic impact if a spill occurs.
Despite its enormous potential, geothermal energy supplied just 0.4 percent of U.S. electricity in 2019.
Manmade perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been detected in snow at the top of Mount Everest, posing a risk for trekkers, climbers and residents that drink the water.
Although honey bees symbolize sustainability and are vital to farmers, they also have a distressing effect on the environment—destabilizing natural ecosystems by competing with native bees.
Researchers have developed a carbon-neutral way to produce jet fuel using carbon dioxide as a main ingredient.
Jan 29, 2021 08:30AM
Research suggests hurricanes will remain stronger and persist longer after making landfall, causing greater and more widespread destruction, because of ocean waters heated by climate change.
Researchers estimate people that drink bottled water ingest an additional 90,000 microplastic particles annually compared to 4,000 microplastics for those that drink only tap water.
Research finds that switching a child’s playground from gravel to natural forest floor could foster a better immune system by exposing them to a greater variety of skin and gut bacteria.
62 oil and gas companies acting as the Climate and Clean Air Coalition’s Oil and Gas Methane Partnership have adopted framework to report methane emissions, but none of them are in the U.S.
The manufacture of cement creates up to 8 percent of the total global carbon dioxide generated by humans, but a variety of approaches are being explored to lower these worrisome emissions.
Extreme levels of stress from wildfires, hurricanes, floods and the pandemic can induce “disaster fatigue”, a form of emotional exhaustion that may reshape how people make choices.
Dec 30, 2020 08:30AM
A new study suggests that people that share more live longer because the act of giving and receiving increases well-being.
Researchers hypothesize that some animals are able to sense the Earth’s magnetic fields due to a symbiotic relationship with magnetotactic bacteria.
An international team of coastal scientists from around the world has disproved the theory that half the world’s beaches will become extinct over the course of the 21st century.
Scientists have developed a material that works like a luminescent solar concentrator for producing energy directly where needed that can be applied to textiles.
Researchers find that the act of smiling and moving facial muscles can trick our mind into taking a more positive attitude.
Rising nitrous oxide (N20) emissions are jeopardizing the climate goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, according to a study.
Nov 27, 2020 08:30AM
Amazon is labeling approximately 25,000 products with a Climate Pledge Friendly (CPF) designation to meet a commitment to become carbon neutral by 2040.
California governor has signed the Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act into law, which bans 24 ingredients from cosmetics and personal care products sold within the state.
MilkRun, a Portland, Oregon company, is supporting local farmers on small farms by enabling them to sell produce safely and directly to consumers.
According to the Institute for Economics and Peace, more than 1 billion people worldwide will live in countries with insufficient infrastructure to withstand climate change by 2050.
WellExplorer is an interactive tool that allows residents and scientists to find out what toxins have been deposited in their drinking water as a result of hydraulic fracturing (fracking).
Arctic Ice Project is proposing to scatter a thin layer of reflective silica glass particles over parts of the Arctic in an effort to protect it from the sun and help ice to re-form.
Oct 30, 2020 08:30AM
As millions of metric tons of solar panel waste containing lead are projected in the coming years, groups are working ensure proper recycling protocols are in place.
Nearly 6,000 scientists signed a pledge to #ShutDownSTEM on June 10, the day of the Strike for Black Lives across higher education.
Blue jeans create a unique type of environmental pollution as researchers have detected indigo denim microfibers in wastewater effluent, lakes and even remote Arctic marine sediment.
A study found that forest recovery declines significantly under warmer, drier conditions caused by climate change, making forests less resilient to fire.
Species of global conservation concern have declined in Canada by 42 percent and Canadian at-risk species fell by 59 percent, between 1970 and 2016, according to a new report.
The state of California has approved a $437 million campaign devoted to building thousands of electric vehicle (EV) chargers.
Sep 30, 2020 08:30AM
Scientists have found that the skin of deep-sea fish absorbs more than 99.95 percent of the light that hits them, aiding research in ultra-black substances for sensitive optical equipment.
According to a recent report on e-waste, a record 53.6 million metric tons of electronics were discarded in 2019 and could likely increase to 74.7 million tons per year by 2030.
Apple, Inc., the maker of the iPhone, iPad and Mac computers, has committed to becoming 100 percent carbon neutral overall, from its supply chain to retail outlets, by 2030.
Experts have discovered kelp that has survived for 16,000 years since the last ice age and are hopeful that this find will show how marine plant life survives extreme changes in climate.
The global total fertility rate (TFR) nearly halved from 1950 levels, when women had an average of 4.7 children each, to 2.4 in 2017, and it could fall below 1.7 by the turn of the century.
A worldwide inventory of methane sources reveals that atmospheric levels of the heat-trapping greenhouse gas are at an all-time high due to agriculture, fossil fuels and landfill waste.
Aug 31, 2020 08:30AM
A study concludes that if we act quickly and decisively, there is an opportunity to conserve about half of the planet’s ice-free land.
Conscientious nurses have formed the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and partnered with Project Drawdown to significantly impact climate change and create a healthier future.
Manufacturer Kuraray has introduced a renewable and sustainable starch-based barrier film called Plantic. The plant-based packaging material can be recycled or composted.
Researchers estimate more than 1,000 tons of microplastics are deposited from the air into national parks and wilderness areas each year.
Study finds that loggerhead turtles are attracted to ocean plastic they've confused as food, causing 1,000 to die each year from consuming plastic or getting tangled up in it.
A study that analyzed the climate impacts of hydropower generation facilities found that while many release almost no greenhouse gases, some can be worse than burning fossil fuels.
Jul 31, 2020 08:30AM
The Montana Supreme Court has decided that fossils should not be deemed minerals, a ruling that restores ownership to landowners and benefits scientific fossil hunting by paleontologists.
A conservation biologist and an artist designed a menagerie of imaginary beasts to find out which animals people were most willing to support through financial donations.
All over the world, plants and animals are increasingly threatened by human activities and habitat encroachment.
When pollen is scarce, bumblebees use their mouth parts to snip little bits out of plant foliage, causing the plants to bloom at an accelerated rate.
Tropical forests remove and absorb carbon from the atmosphere, but as trees stressed by global warming die and release their carbon, their ability to act as reservoirs will diminish.
The U.S. Department of Energy is spending $230 million this fiscal year to start building two new prototype nuclear reactors as part of an Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program.
Jun 30, 2020 08:30AM
Viruses like COVID-19 that jump from animals to people will likely become more common as people continue to transform natural habitats into agricultural land, says a new study.
Nature may improve cognitive function by improving memory formation and recall, specifically that of short-term or working memory, and goal-oriented or directed attention.
In research that could help target new treatments for skin cancer, scientists have identified how human skin suppresses inflammation after exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR).
Listening to music for 30 minutes a day can lower post-heart attack anxiety and significantly reduce future cardiac risks, reports a new study.
Fear and anxiety brought on by major stressors such as the COVID-19 pandemic may have a lasting impact on a man’s sperm composition that could affect future offspring.
Mindfulness and meditation techniques have been linked to anti-aging and longevity, as marked by longer telomere length, a biomarker of human aging.
May 29, 2020 08:30AM
A high voltage can be generated from raindrops using a field-effect, transistor-style structure, reports a new study.
Countries around the world are growing “sentinel trees” in strategic locations to receive advance warnings of destructive pests that could destroy native plantings.
Researchers have found that just one week of practicing mindfulness—moment-to-moment awareness—reduces feelings of paranoia.
People continuously exposed to air pollution are at increased risk of dementia, especially if they also suffer from cardiovascular diseases, reports a new study.
Tofu and other foods containing higher amounts of isoflavones are associated with a lower risk of heart disease, especially for younger women and postmenopausal women not taking hormones.
Australia’s devastating wildfires during 2019 and 2020 were at least 30 percent more likely to occur because of human-caused climate change.
Researchers have found how the thermoelectric effect, or converting temperature differences into electricity, can be best used to power small, flexible devices.
Apr 30, 2020 08:30AM
If Australia can grow enough of the puffy, pink Asparagopsis taxiformis seaweed for every cow in the country, they could cut greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent.
Biowaste from durian fruit and jackfruit scraps is a possible candidate to create next generation, high-performance, yet low-cost supercapacitors for energy storage devices.
New research suggests that individual members of a bee swarm behave like neurons in a human brain.
Five new songbird species and five new subspecies have been found on a single small island near Sulawesi, Indonesia.
For his 40th birthday, the King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, asked his people to either plant a tree, adopt a stray animal or clean up their neighborhood in his honor.
A tax on carbon dioxide emissions in Great Britain has led to the proportion of electricity generated from coal falling from 40 percent to 3 percent over six years.
A study finds that wildness in urban areas is profoundly important for human well-being, impacting both physical and mental health.
Mar 31, 2020 08:30AM
Between 2005 and 2016, the shutdown of coal-fired plants in the U.S. saved an estimated 26,610 lives and the equivalent of around 570 million bushels of corn, soybeans and wheat.
A new law bans popular plastic bags in the Mexican capital, as well as handing out plastic straws, spoons, coffee capsules and other single-use items by 2021.
Igloo has introduced a new, biodegradable cooler made out of paraffin wax and recycled tree pulp called Recool.
Temperature changes, water shortages and rising sea levels will impact some of the world’s most populous cities during the next 30 years.
The USDA has closed a loophole that allowed farmers to spray soil with Monsanto’s glysophate to clear weeds prior to building a “certified organics” hydroponics greenhouse.
A “green” sunscreen has been synthesized from discarded cashew-nut shells, providing good UVA and UVB absorbance, which can protect from harmful rays from the sun.
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found contamination of U.S. drinking water with manmade “forever chemicals” to be much worse than estimated.
Feb 28, 2020 08:30AM
Canada-based Harbour Air has launched the first successful test flight of an all-electric aircraft.
Copenhagen has dramatically refashioned the look and function of a power station with Copenhill, a waste-to-power plant that powers homes and includes a ski slope, a climbing wall and more.
Tequila maker Jose Cuervo has initiated an eco-friendly process of salvaging the leftover agave fibers from its distilling process and upcycling them into biodegradable drinking straws.
Palau is the first country in the world to ban ecologically harmful sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate.
3D-printing techniques are being used for building houses with the benefits of lower costs, less waste and reduced construction time.
Researchers find that natural scents can help to reduce stress.
Jan 31, 2020 08:30AM
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) reaffirms the importance of the Earth Charter as an ethical framework for sustainable development.
In 1969, there were only 100 South American fur seals and sea lions along the coastline of Lima, but that has increased to more than 8,000 today, thanks to local fishermen.
Scientists have detected a previously unknown periodic movement in trees raising and lowering their branches, similar to the pumping action of a heartbeat.
Alaska, which has some of the most pristine environments in the U.S., also has some of the worst air quality in its cities.
Toronto startup Flash Forest is using aerial drones to plant trees 10 times faster than human planters with a goal of 1 billion trees by 2028.
A new Climate Neutral product label is helping consumers identify brands that practice sustainable processes.
A drought-plagued Kenyan region is using a new, solar-powered, desalination plant from the international nonprofit GivePower to obtain clean water.
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